


From the greatest prince

by SmallPotatoCat



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merlin (TV) Fusion, M/M, Magic, Minor Character Death, Secret Crush, Secret Identity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:08:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29592582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmallPotatoCat/pseuds/SmallPotatoCat
Summary: In a land of myth and a time of magic...Jaehyun crossed the path of a sorcerer who wanted his soul, and Taeyong had to save his dumb ass once again.
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Lee Taeyong
Comments: 6
Kudos: 22
Collections: Challenge #5 — I heard a secret..





	From the greatest prince

**Author's Note:**

> I was like "so the secret is that Taeyong has a crush on Jaehyun and that he's a wizard" but well everyone is lying to everyone so the whole fic is a secret at this point–
> 
> Anyway this is inpspired by S1ep7 except that i cut half of the script because i can't write more than 3K and that i was mean to my characters  
> I spent way too much time one the serie's wiki please have some consideration–

Jaehyun sighed as he heard  _ another _ branch cracking. 

Surely, taking his idiot of a servant hunting wasn't the best idea he had today. 

"Taeyong, for God's sake!" He hissed, and Taeyong magically appeared from behind a tree. "Stop making so much noise! You're scaring the preys!"

"Well  _ excuse me _ Sir, but is it my fault if there's dead leaves and branches everywhere?" Taeyong retorted, in a vain attempt to excuse himself.

"Yet I perfectly manage to move without making a sound!" Jaehyun said, rolling his eyes. "So I got an idea, how about you shut your mouth, stop moving, and wait here until–" 

_ Until we go back to Camelot.  _

That's what Jaehyun would have said if they hadn't suddenly heard someone screaming. 

Jaehyun immediately dropped his crossbow, rushing toward the scream. 

There were two hooded silhouettes—obviously rich people according to the bright colors of their capes—surrounded by thieves. Without missing a beat, Jaehyun pulled out his sword, and immediately engaged in a fight with the robbers. 

Which wasn’t the smartest move, because they were three, and he was alone. And all nice and willing to help Taeyong was, he was far from being a knight and he couldn’t fight.

At least, that was what Jaehyun thought. Of course, Taeyong was incapable of fighting in any way, but he bore a secret that would make it useless—as well as send him on the stake before he could even realize it.

So when he was sure nobody was looking at him, his eyes suddenly turned gold, a root emerged from the ground and one of the thieves tripped on it, allowing Jaehyun to kick him in the face, just before he impaled a second man with his sword.

The third one backed up, obviously scared, and when Jaehyun made a move forward, he ran away.

He smirked, full of this insufferable pride that Taeyong wished he could ram it down his throat, and turned to the two persons he rescued.

“Is everything fine?” He asked, as a man stepped between him and the other person. “Are you injured?”

“We are fine, Sir, thank you so much.” He bowed ; his eyes falled on Jaehyun’s face, and he gasped, “A-aren’t you– Aren’t you Prince Jaehyun Pendragon from Camelot?”

“Himself, yes. And who are you?”

“Nobody, you Highness.” The man bowed even lower, before waving at the other person, “Just a traveler passing by, Sir. This is my son, Doyoung, and we’re heading to Caerleon, in hope to find someone to receive us.”

Doyoung smiled at Jaehyun, and Taeyong could have sworn he never saw Jaehyun looking at someone this way. For a second, it was as if he was frozen right here, not a muscle was moving anymore, as his eyes widened.

  
He then blinked rapidly, pretending nothing happened, “Caerleon, uh? It’s not like it is next door. What are you doing there?”

“We’re coming from Tír-mòr, our house has been robbed, and burnt down.” Doyoung answered with a sad voice. “We’re meeting family in Caerleon, so we can at least have somewhere to sleep.”

“Tír-mòr? But that’s even further away!” Taeyong exclaimed, and Jaehyun gave him a stern look.

“I’m sorry you’ve been attacked on my domain.” Jaehyun said. “May I offer you to walk you to Camelot?”

Doyoung smiled again, “It would be an honor, Sir.”   
  
~*~

Taeyong stared a few minutes at the door that was almost slammed in his face. Seems like he wasn’t allowed to witness the discussion between the king and his two guests.

Fine. He’ll find something else to do.

Or alternatively, it was something else to do that found him, as Sicheng approached him with a concerned look.

“Who are they?” He immediately asked, and Taeyong blinked dumbly.

“Who?”

“The two men who were with you? That just entered the room?”

Taeyong shrugged, “I don’t know, travelers Jaehyun rescued in the forest.”   
  


Sicheng looked around, as to check that no-one was coming, and he gripped Taeyong’s sleeve, dragging him away.

  
“I know it’s—I know it might seem strange, but I need to ask you something.” He muttered, “This man, the younger one, I… You need to keep Jaehyun away from him.”

“Doyoung? Why, you know him?”

“Not exactly… I had a dream. Jaehyun… Jaehyun was killed by this man. He bewitched him, and he killed him.” Sicheng whispered, even lower, and Taeyong’s eyes widened. “You must not tell anybody.” He warned. “Taeyong, promise me you won’t tell anybody. Someone could think I’m using magic—I’m not! Believe me, I’m not using any kind of magic! B-but I still have a bad feeling about him. Please, protect Jaehyun.”

And before Taeyong could add anything, Sicheng disappeared.

So Taeyong did what he knew the best: cleaning.

~*~

Taeyong has been cleaning Jaehyun’s room and clothes for almost two hours, when the latter entered the room with a dumb smile and an empty gaze.   
  
“Ah, Taeyong! I’m glad you’re here, I need your help!” He exclaimed. “I need you to do me a favor.”

“A favor? Usually it’s more of an order. Does it mean I’m allowed to refuse to do it?”

“Yes but I’d be really upset. I need you to cover me up.”   
  
“You need me to do what?” Taeyong repeated, as if he hoped that Jaehyun would say something else.

“To cover me up. You see, I may have, hum… A patrol to do, this afternoon, but… Well, Doyoung wants me to show him around. I need you to cover me up, so that my father doesn’t find out that I missed it, you know?” 

“You’re asking me to lie to the king?” Taeyong gave him a suspicious look, “For a man you met, what, two hours ago?”

“I– Yes, basically.”

“I’m not sure– I mean, you have responsibilities, and everything… And if the king finds out that I lied to him, I’ll end up on the pillory!” Taeyong tried, remembering Sicheng’s warning from earlier.

“Come on, Taeyong. I know I can trust you on this.”   
  
“Actually you never trust me on this.”

“Whatever.” Jaehyun swept Taeyong’s words aside, “This time I trust you on this.”

Taeyong was about to say no. He really wanted to say no, both to protect Jaehyun and himself.

But how could he deny anything to Jaehyun, especially when he was looking at him like  _ this _ ? With such a pleading look and innocent face?

Taeyong’s heart was too weak.

“Fine, I’ll do it!” He exclaimed, quickly walking away from Jaehyun, “But it has to be the only time!”

“Thank you, Taeyong, Thank you! It will, I swear!”

~*~

It was absolutely not the only time Jaehyun asked Taeyong to cover him up.

In fact, it happened for two whole weeks after that, and Taeyong ended up on the pillory five times already. 

And if he was really honest, Jaehyun flirting around with Doyoung wasn't the most pleasant thing to witness.

So when Jaehyun asked for his help one more time, he strongly refused. 

"No. No, I'm sorry, but I can't anymore." He said, scrubbing the floor to avoid Jaehyun's gaze. 

"Taeyong, please!" 

"I said I can't, please stop asking. I'm tired to– I've already been sent to the pillory five times, while you were playing around with Doyoung! Uther said that next time I'll be sent to the gallows!" 

"Do I have to beg you on my knees?" Jaehyun asked, already kneeling.

Taeyong got up, only to flee Jaehyun again, "No, it won't change my mind.”

“Taeyong, please, I need your help.”   
  
“No.”   
  
“Please!”

“No!”

“Taeyong!” Jaehyun shouted.

“Jaehyun!” Taeyong shouted back, losing patience. “Please stop it! I said I won’t! Besides, you can’t run away from your responsibilities forever, least of all for an absolute stranger!”

“Doyoung is not an  _ absolute stranger _ ! I love him!”

Taeyong felt his heart shatter in his chest, as he fought to hold back tears.

He scoffed, trying to hide his trembling voice, “How can you love him, you knew him for only two weeks!”

“Love is not something I have control on. But of course, you can’t understand this, you’ve never loved anyone except your mother.”   
  
Taeyong let out a bitter laughter, “You really think so? Then let me tell you, you’re absolutely wrong! But it seems like it was a mistake, as they’re an absolute jerk!”

With that, Taeyong threw his floorcloth in the bucket of water and left the room, slamming the door behind him.

~*~

It was somewhere in the middle of the night, when Taeyong heard someone knocking on his door.

He got out of bed groaning, swearing that whoever it was, they were the one deserving the gallows ; his mindset immediately changed when he crossed the panicked face of Sicheng.

“Sir? what are you doing there in the middle of the night?”

“J-jaehyun– Jaehyun is gone…!” Sicheng hardly explained, his voice low and weak.

“Gone? What do you mean, gone?”   
  
“He’s gone, Taeyong! He…! Sooner this afternoon, he… He asked our father for the permission to marry Doyoung! He refused, of course, b-but Jaehyun said he didn’t care about it, and that he’ll marry Doyoung anyway, and…! And they… The three of them just left by the north entrance, they hadn’t left Camelot yet when I saw them, but–”

“But the more we talk, the further they go!” Taeyong cut, coming back in his room to quickly put on his shoes. “Don’t worry, I’ll take him back.”   
  
“Taeyong, wait, I have one last thing to tell you.” Sicheng said, grabbing Taeyong’s arm as he passed next to him. “Doyoung isn’t who he pretends to be.”

“What do you mean?”

“It- It’s hard to explain. But I have a feeling that he’s… Way more powerful than what he looks like.”

Taeyong nodded, “Understood. I’ll be careful.”

And he left, running through the corridors of the castle.

~*~

It didn’t take much time for Taeyong to find Jaehyun’s trace, as they weren’t going really fast.

He followed them to a large lake in the forest, and Taeyong could feel that it wasn’t  _ just _ a lake. He could feel a powerful magic radiating from it, and he was pretty sure that there was some sort of shield around it, preventing normal people from finding it.

Which suggested that Doyoung and his father  _ weren’t _ normal people—just as Sicheng thought.

And the closer Taeyong was, the more he could confirm it. He could see the golden aura around Jaehyun, sign that he was under the influence of a spell.

Doyoung’s face was out of sight, but the two long blue ears peeking through his hair weren’t, making it more obvious that neither Doyoung nor his father were human.

“Your Majesty!" The old man yelled at the void, while Doyoung dragged Jaehyun into the water of the lake. “I have brought you a soul!”

The only answer he got was the silence, echoing Doyoung’s voice mumbling something Taeyong couldn’t hear. The man then took a staff out from under his cape, pointing it at the sky.

“I have brought you a soul!” He repeated. “You asked us for the soul of a prince? Let me introduce you to the greatest prince: Jaehyun Pendragon himself!”

And in a blink of an eye, Jaehyun was struck by lightning, making him sink ; Taeyong had to refrain himself from yelling. 

Doyoung’s voice became louder, making it clear that he was casting a spell on Jaehyun. Taeyong’s brain was running in full capacity. They were obviously going to sacrifice him in some sort of way, and if he didn’t act quickly, he wouldn’t be able to save him.

If Sicheng was right—and he’s been right so far—, Doyoung and his father were really powerful sorcerers. Considering that if anyone finds out that Taeyong were a sorcerer he would be sentenced to death, he couldn’t train much, therefore they were surely way more powerful than him. The situation was hopeless.

Taeyong could never beat them.

Or, he could never beat them with his  _ own _ magic.

It was evident that Doyoung’s father drew his greatest magic from his staff. If Taeyong could only have it in hands…

“ _ Onbregdan _ !” He suddenly shouted, in a hopeless attempt to unsettle the man.

It works, without him really knowing how, but the second he casted his spell, the staff was in his hand.

The man looked around in terror, trying to catch whoever was confronting his plans. Doyoung must have heard him too, because he was no longer reciting his incantation.

“You fool! You have no idea of what you’re holding!” The father groaned.

“Father, be careful! I have a bad feeling about this man…!” Doyoung warned, concerned.

“Don’t worry, Doyoung, I know what I’m doing. Now give me back this staff, kid, you could hurt someone!”

“That’s exactly the point!” Taeyong threatened, pointing the staff at the man. “He’s a jerk and a moron, but I can’t let you sacrifice Jaehyun.  _ Swelt goldbeorth _ !”

“No!”

Doyoung’s scream couldn’t do anything against Taeyong’s spell; as soon as the words came out, a lightning hit his father, and his whole body exploded.

“Father!” Doyoung cried, immediately trying to get out of the water.

But Taeyong didn’t give him the time to.

“ _ Og kelis _ !”

Doyoung’s body shattered just like his father, one last scream echoing in the air.

Taeyong stood there, breathing heavily and staring at the void for a long minute, before suddenly realizing that Jaehyun was still somewhere underwater.

Without thinking more, he dropped the staff and dived in the lake, hoping he wasn’t too late…

~*~

When Jaehyun woke up, he didn’t expect his head to hurt so bad, and certainly didn't expect Sicheng to be watching over him.

The latter seemed so relieved when he saw Jaehyun opening his eyes.

“Oh dear lord, you’re finally awake.” He sighed with a smile, and Jaehyun tried to sit up. 

"How did I– What happened, really?" He asked, looking around him. 

"Doyoung charmed you. He wanted– We don't know why, but he wanted to sacrifice you, or something like that."

"Doyoung, really? Where is he, now? And what–" 

Jaehyun couldn't keep asking questions, as the door of his room opened. 

Taeyong entered, immediately freezing when he met Jaehyun's gaze.

"You're awake…!" 

"Wait did you cry?" 

"What? No. No I didn't." Taeyong lied, yet rubbing his eyes.

"It looks like you cried, though. Your eyes are red."

"It's because I'm tired. You don't seem to realize I had to drag your ass back to Camelot after saving you from a sorcerer, and that it happened in the middle of the night, and that I hadn't slept since."

Jaehyun rolled his eyes, "Taeyong, language."

"Sorry ; that I had to drag your  _ royal _ ass back to Camelot."

Jaehyun scoffed, before throwing him one of his pillows, "You're lucky that I'm too weak to stand up, or I'd already be beating your own ass! Also, you're a terrible liar, and you definitely cried."

"Yeah, yeah, in your dreams, maybe. Now excuse me, I have chores to do." Taeyong said. 

"I'll leave too, you need to rest." Sicheng added, giving Jaehyun his pillow back. "Please don't be irresponsible, and don't try to get up before the court doctor says you can."

Jaehyun only nodded, and Sicheng and Taeyong left together. 

They walked side by side in silence for a moment, until Sicheng finally spoke. 

"You know, you don't need to hide yourself from me. I know."

Taeyong's heart missed a beat, "What? Know what?" 

"I know your secret."

"I don't–" Taeyong was about to argue, but he saw in Sicheng's eyes that it was useless. He knew, and he was absolutely sure about it. "Oh my god please don't tell anyone. I don't want to die, please."

Sicheng laughed, "But why would you die? It's not a crime to love someone!" 

"To love– What?" 

"And anyway, you're pretty obvious, I spotted it even though I'm not often around the two of you. Well Jaehyun is blind, and an idiot, so he doesn't know. But I see the way you look at him. The way you were crying over his inanimate body, begging someone to save him. The way you're always protecting him."

Oh.

He knew about  _ that _ secret.

"I look at him like the moron he is." Taeyong vainly denied. "Of course I'm protecting him, have you ever seen how dumb he is?" 

"Come on, you want to kiss him so bad, I know it." Sicheng insisted, smirking, and Taeyong could feel his cheeks burning. "And Jaehyun is right, you're a terrible liar."

**Author's Note:**

> I hope someone noticed the reference to the Zelda's animated serie–
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/petitchatpatate?s=09)


End file.
